When I see a former ally in the antiwar movement post an article from Global Research, an Assadist & libertarian journal, or from fascists Bartlett or Beeley, I must admit to feeling kind of sad. At least before my adrenalin acts up. But then I remember many of them were latecomers to antiwar politics & got sucked into the orbit of Stalinist socialist groups who were part of the Minneapolis antiwar movement–& not an easy part to deal with. The attraction to Stalinism has always escaped me even in my most naive days. Just before I retired to Texas from Minnesota, a group of those antiwar activists formed a study group & the first readings were from the collected writings of Joseph Stalin–not to understand autocracy & tyranny but as though he were a political teacher. It’s no wonder they became supporters of Assad since Assadism is very much the grotesque amalgam of fascism with Stalinism. That isn’t where those naive activists hoped to end up. But it’s where they are. Because you can’t short-circuit democracy & you can’t justify dictatorship.